So this was an incredibly fun project to work on, which I apparently did over the course of about 6 months. I also featured this piece in the 20th annual Art All Night – Lawrenceville.

Original SOLD

“Lizard in the Midst of an Existential Crisis”DetailArt All Night 2017

It all started with just a small canvas and a little bit of apoxie sculpt.

Note: The eye was first painted on canvas – which I eventually cut out because I hated the canvas texture.Only some of the scales are sculptedPainting between scalesI went through many layers of oil paint over several months (oil dries SLOWLY). Note the canvas texture to the eye. Blech. I’m fine with canvas for some of the skin and how it contrasts with the sculpted part.As mentioned above, I hated the eye. So I ripped it out and sculpted an actual iris (that pupil actually has depth including behind the iris)Glass cabochonThere is pearl pigment mixed in the iris paintlameIn the end, I epoxied the sculpted iris to the back of the glass with a crystal clear resin. I built the frame out of some 100+ year old reclaimed wood.

My amazing wife bought me a new oil painting kit for my birthday. It’s officially time for me to learn how to actually use them! I did a few tiny sketches (like 4×4″) just to practice this relatively new medium (I’ve only used once before on this 3D octopus).

Oil Sketch #3: Laguna Waves” (based on a photo from a vacation in Laguna Beach)Oil Sketch #2: Double-Collared Sunbird” (based on my photograph in Cape Town, South Africa)Oil Sketch #1: Shorebird (based on a photo from our wedding in Mauritius)